Alice is another Tim Burton / Johnny Depp movie. They’re are a great combination. But I’ll probably not go to the cinema to watch it.

A nice coincidence, Avril has the title track. Life down the rabbit hole would be cool enough if Avril was there with an off-the-shoulder Goth look…

As ever, the Youtube embed feature has been disabled, so here’s a fan video.

The official video here Avril Lavigne – Official ‘Alice (Underground)’

Question: “If you were to glimpse 137 seconds of your life, six months in the future, what would you see?”

• How would you react?
• What if everyone in the world had had a similar experience?
• What would they do?
• How could it have happened?

Flash Forward starts with such an event. Then follows on a group of characters as they try to answer these questions.

The science is believable enough. There have been hints that an experiment in quantum mechanics caused the blackouts. Episode 7 “The Gift”, shows the future isn’t set in stone. Which is consistent with those interpretations of Quantum Theory which postulate all possible universes co-exist.

Yeah it gives me a headache too.

If the science is believable, I’m not so sure the characters are. Would FBI agents really behave that way?. Everyone seems a bit too relaxed about suddenly seeing the future, an event that caused mega-deaths.

Wouldn’t the whole world be on the brink of war, if not gone to war?

Still I like it. Flash Forward gets better as it goes on. From the simple idea, the plot has grown, becoming more convoluted and interesting. There are sub-plots and plots within plots. You get the idea that it will all pull together in the end.

In the UK it is being screened on Channel 5. Which is great as you can always catch up using their Web TV.

This has become must watch TV for me.

Defying Gravity follows eight astronauts as they start out on a six-year-mission to Venus and other parts of the solar system.

I never saw this advertised. I stumbled across it by chance. I am now up to date, having caught up using the BBC iPlayer.

It’s lucky I never saw any of the trailers. They are completely OTT. If I had of seen one, I probably would have not bothered to watch the show.

As you might expect from a show with the Grey’s Anatomy in Space label, the focus is on interpersonal relationships rather than science.

lost in production?

In the first two episodes there has been an abortion, an attempted suicide, two left to die on Mars, one near death experience, one weightless sex scene and a mysterious alien presence in the hold.

Just an everyday story of space-faring folk in 2052.

The science looks reasonable, nothing to stretch my credulity so far.

One exception is the rational behind the mission. Would anyone really send an eight crew on a six year tour of the solar system? Perhaps the mystery in the hold explains this. I will have to be patient.

I do like it though. It promises much. Unfortunately it was not very successful in the US and so only the first series was made.

Blondes in Space

My favourite character is Zoe Barnes played by Laura Harris, I liked her in Dead Like Me. Zoe Barnes reminds me of Trillion from the BBC TV production of the Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy. In the future all spaceships should have at least one blonde.

Are you listening Star Trek?

There is some great new TV this season. Stargate Universe, Defying Gravity and Flashforward are all looking good. Is this the new “Golden Age” of SciFi?

Today, a review of the new Stargate, I will review the others later.

I liked the Stargate franchise, but thought it had become a little stale. Still, I am thinking of asking for the box series of Stargate SG1 for Christmas.

In the latest outing of the franchise, a group of present day scientists and soldiers are forced through a teleportation device to escape attack. They end up on a huge, ancient starship, on the other side of the Universe with no way back to Earth.

None of the escapees were expecting this. Much of the story so far is how the various factions and characters come to terms with the situation. It has been very dark. Not a happy crew by any stretch of the imagination.

No aliens as yet, just the alien ship which is falling to pieces.

The best part of the show is Euwen McGregger as Dr Nicholas Rush. I can’t think of anything he’s done that I haven’t liked. He certainly adds to the edgy feel. Dr Rush is a complex character.

In fact, all the characters are more interesting than those in the other Stargates. The show has moved away from the Black Hat / White Hat, Good / Evil duality. Stargate Universe is painted in shades of grey, something for the adults among us.

I am looking forward to watching this hotchpotch of characters evolve.

Hopefully, this new series will continue to move away from the original. The writers have a grand canvas to paint on, the whole universe.

That’s what I like most about SciFi, an unlimited canvas to paint characters on.